3:45pm - 4pm - Coffee Break

A group of mothers from La Union, an immigrant advocacy organization in Brooklyn. The exhibit celebrates "The Role of Migrant Women in their Children's Education," with photos by photographer David Bacon.

The CUNY Institute of Mexican Studies opened a call for proposals for our annual conference in January.

Description The CUNY Institute of Mexican Studies will host a one-day conference on May 10, 2013, “Mexico-NY: Thirty Years of Migration.” This conference will be a major gathering of scholars from Mexico and the United States to disseminate research on three decades of migration between Mexico and New York. The proceedings will be simultaneously available on the web and then will be archived and available on the Institute of Mexican Studies website. Additionally, an edited volume of selected papers will be prepared and published to further disseminate the results of the conference.

The conference will build on the accomplishments of the 2012-2013 yearlong Mexico-NY interactive web based seminar, or Virtual Seminar Series the CUNY Institute of Mexican Studies is coordinating between Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP) and the City University of New York (CUNY).

Objectives Our primary goal is to promote a dialogue on research related to diverse aspects of transnational migration between Mexico and New York by creating a forum where US and Mexican academics can engage with one another. Mexican migration to New York originated more than three decades ago and this conference will be a landmark event, reflecting on the growth of a community, its contributions to New York, and challenges that persist. While scholars in Mexico and the US have studied this population, to date there has been no academic conference that has deliberately sought to draw together the pioneering and emerging scholars who have worked specifically on Mexico-NY migration in a binational dialogue.

The Need for Dialogue on Migration between Mexico and New York and information on the Institute of Mexican Studies

To more fully understand migration issues between Mexico and New York, a transnational perspective needs to be employed since communities are changing on both sides of the border.

Mexicans constitute the fastest growing national sub-group in New York City, due to high rates of immigration and high births. If these rates remain the same, the Mexican population will surpass that of other Latino groups in New York City by the year 2024.The number of Mexicans living in New York City has grown 57.7% in the last decade. The Mexican population in New York City is 319, 126 according to U.S. Census data for the most recent year available, 2010.However, due to undercounting, the population is much greater.

The newly created CUNY-wide Institute of Mexican Studies at Lehman College (launched Spring 2012) serves to bridge scholarly networks in Mexico and the United States who share related research agendas.

Dissemination of Results

Video and audio of the conference proceedings will be broadcast live via web and then be archived on the CUNY Institute for Mexican Studies website.

Additionally, a volume of selected papers from the conference will be published.